One of the advantages offered by a typical network-based transaction facility, such as an Internet-based auction facility, is the simplicity and promptness of its registration process. Any one who is willing to provide some basic registration information (e.g., name, address, phone number, and email address) can immediately become a participant of the facility. Having a large number of participants benefits the facility and its members. For instance, in an auction facility with a large number of sellers, buyers are presented with a larger variety of items. Similarly, sellers benefit from conducting business in an auction facility that has a large number of buyers. Accordingly, it is important to allow a large number of registrants to successfully complete the registration process and become a member of the facility.
However, access to the network-based transaction facility cannot be unlimited. Indeed, for participants of a network-based transaction facility, verification of user identity is particularly important for enhancing user trust in the transaction facility. In other words, a reasonable assurance that a trader is who he or she claims to be may be particularly valuable and useful in providing other traders with a degree of confidence regarding that specific trader and the transaction facility itself.
Therefore, it will be advantageous to maintain such a level of identity verification of new registrants as not to unnecessary limit the access to the network-based transaction facility.